The question with Bears quarterback Caleb Williams is not whether he’ll make mistakes, but rather whether he’ll learn from them. The answer is crucial to his future.
The latest lesson was on his game-sinking interception in the fourth quarter against the Ravens on Sunday. Williams said afterward he read the play correctly when choosing to throw to wide receiver Rome Odunze, but coach Ben Johnson thought it was a bad idea and wouldn’t have been a viable option no matter how sharp the pass was.
Williams circled back to that disagreement Wednesday, after ample time to watch film and get Johnson’s feedback, and conceded that his coach was right.
Problem No. 1: He didn’t see running back Kyle Monangai open at the 10-yard line with room to run.
Problem No. 2: He misread cornerback Nate Wiggins, thinking he’d follow DJ Moore deep down the field and leave Odunze to teammate Marlon Humphrey. Wiggins was covering Odunze the entire time, starting at the line of scrimmage.
Problem No. 3: He didn’t accurately assess how fast the window would close with Humphrey and Wiggins heading toward Odunze from either side.
“That was a good rep for me to bank,” Williams said.
Only if it leads to growth, such as sizing it up correctly and making a better decision next time.
His predecessor, Justin Fields, was still making mistakes like that in Year 3, which is why this job opened up for Williams in the first place. He’ll make his 25th career start Sunday when the Bears visit the Bengals, and this is the time to be moving past those types of errors.
The Bengals, by the way, have allowed the most points in the NFL and the eighth-highest opponent passer rating. It’s a prime opportunity for Williams to demonstrate that he’s learning.
The upside, unlike with Fields or in Williams’ rookie season, is that the Bears seem to have a coach who knows what he’s talking about and gets his players’ attention.
The gunslinger in Williams shined through nonetheless Wednesday when he added, “I feel that I could still it in there,” but acknowledged it didn’t make sense to opt for such a high-degree-of-difficulty pass when he could toss an easy one to Monangai “as fast as possible and then let him go make a great play for us.”
It’s the fine line Williams and the Bears are walking in his development. He made a name for himself with splashy plays at USC, and Johnson doesn’t want to squash his adventurous spirit, but a strong quarterbacking game in the NFL is built on mostly making simple, sound decisions with a few explosives mixed in. It’s boring, but it works.
Williams said in August he had “clashes” with Johnson in which they disagreed on the practice field or in a meeting and pointed to those as essential for him to grow and for them to align. That appears to still be his attitude, which is encouraging.
He described an example in an interview with the Sun-Times, saying, “We clashed in that moment and then we sat and discussed what he wants from me, and you just keep moving along. … It was more like, ‘I understand, I get it.’ I want that moment.”
His overall grading of his game in Baltimore was, “I made one bad play in a situation where we couldn’t afford that,” referring to the interception, but “other than that, I saw it well, I played well. … I had a couple of situations where I could have done a better job.”
That’s a gentle evaluation after he completed 25 of 38 passes for 285 yards with an interception and no touchdowns for a 77.2 passer rating. The offense also managed just 16 points, failing to get a touchdown four of the five times it reached the Ravens’ 30-yard line, and was slow and sloppy at the worst possible times.
Williams committed two intentional-grounding penalties, one that was relatively inconsequential, but another just before halftime that likely cost the Bears points. The offense also continued committing unforced pre-snap penalties and losing time between plays late in each half.
Everyone is responsible for lining up in the right place and being on the right cadence, but the quarterback is the last check. It’s extra responsibility and it’s a lot to ask from someone inexperienced, but it’s in the job description.
“Part of this position is making sure everybody understands the situation,” Williams said. “And if they don’t, provide an urgency with my tempo, my energy.”
All those things are part of the criteria to be a franchise quarterback. Dak Prescott makes sure everyone is in the right spot and on the same page when the Cowboys get to the line. Aaron Rodgers seems to know every defender’s assignment and where they’re headed. Jared Goff sees the value in making the safe throw and letting his receivers do the rest.
And it’s OK for Williams to not know everything at 23, but he has to keep learning. Every mistake must inform how he plays going forward. If that stops, he will, too.
